Three floors of antiques on W Belmont in Chicago sounds straightforward enough. Walk into Good Old Days Inc and the reality is considerably more interesting than that.

The shop sits on a stretch of Belmont that once drew enough dealers to earn the informal nickname Antique Lover's Row. Most of those neighbours have long since closed or relocated. Good Old Days Inc has stayed, held its ground, and kept building. A husband-and-wife team has run the business since at least the early 1980s, and the inventory reflects that kind of accumulated knowledge. These are not curated capsule collections assembled for resale speed. The stock here grows from genuine enthusiasm.

What lines the shelves and fills the cabinets across each level reflects that depth. Architectural salvage is one strong thread — stained and beveled glass windows pulled from older Chicago buildings turn up here with some regularity. Elsewhere, restored vintage radios and televisions occupy their own dedicated space, each selected for its condition. Antique furniture, historic black-and-white photographs, hand-painted signage, quality barware, and vintage promotional items fill out the rest. Ask about a specific piece and the owners can usually tell you where it came from. That kind of provenance knowledge is rarer than it should be.

The basement deserves particular attention. It is stacked rather than staged, and prices there tend to run lower than the floors above. Nothing down here is arranged to impress. Discoveries feel accidental because, largely, they are. Collectors who enjoy the physical process of searching — not just the moment of finding — will want to set aside real time on this level.

The upper floors offer a different pace. Better light, wider aisles, and larger architectural pieces give those levels a more navigable character. Furniture and glass tend to dominate higher up. Moving between floors gives the visit a natural structure, with each level revealing a different category of stock and a different kind of browsing experience.

Good Old Days Inc is open seven days a week. Monday through Thursday the shop opens at 11:00 and closes at 17:00. Friday and Saturday hours extend to 18:00, and on Sundays the shop opens at noon and closes at 17:00. It is worth confirming current hours before a dedicated trip.

Getting there by public transit is straightforward. The Belmont and Leavitt stop serves CTA bus routes 77 and N77 at an approximate straight-line distance of under 100 metres from the shop — the most convenient option for most visitors coming from the city. The Brown Line subway runs through Addison and Paulina stations, both roughly a kilometre away in straight-line distance, and connects to the broader CTA network.

Good Old Days Inc suits collectors who arrive with a specific quarry and browsers who have no plan at all. The range is broad, the ownership brings real expertise, and the inventory moves enough that return visits rarely feel like déjà vu. In a city with plenty of antique options, this shop earns its standing through consistency and depth rather than curation or window dressing.